AMT Receives ACEC National Recognition Award for Winterpock Road Widening Project

Company News | May 31, 2024

From left to right: Nancy Gruwell, Joe Sandor, Jeff McKay, Adam Kendall, Tim Kirk, and Gary Raba.

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Virginia – The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) has announced the winners of this year’s Engineering Excellence Awards (EEA)—the “Academy Awards of the consulting engineering industry.” The Winterpock Road Widening project has been honored with a National Recognition award from ACEC in the transportation category.  The project was formally recognized on May 15th at ACEC Awards Gala in Washington, D.C.

A. Morton Thomas and Associates, Inc. (AMT) and Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson (JMT) were proud to be recognized with an ACEC National Recognition Award for their work on the Winterpock Road Widening project in Chesterfield County, VA. This $12 million VDOT LAP project was administered by Chesterfield County, with AMT serving as the lead designer and engineer of record , and JMT provided construction management and inspection services. Winterpock Road was officially opened on October 27, 2023, and currently accommodates a daily traffic volume exceeding 15,000 vehicles.

Winterpock Road is a very important artery within Chesterfield County and provides direct access from Route 360 (Hull Street Road) to Beach Road as well as several established neighborhoods, Royal Birkdale Golf Course, and Hancock Village Shopping Center. The existing roadway experienced significant congestion which was substantially alleviated by the improvements constructed with this project.

The hybrid roundabout installed at McEnnally Road and Ashbrook Parkway drastically increased intersection operations and overall safety. This project featured many unique challenges and complexities such as substantial right-of-way and utility impacts, extensive public involvement, site specific stormwater management restrictions on nutrient credits, as well as construction along a heavily travelled roadway. AMT and JMT worked together with Chesterfield County to overcome these obstacles by implementing best practices such as proactive and regular coordination with stakeholders, utilizing common sense engineering where feasible, and ensuring the project was constructed in accordance with the plans in a safe and efficient manner. This region of Chesterfield County is experiencing growth in both residential and commercial sectors, and the enhancements along the Winterpock Road Widening corridor are specifically tailored to meet anticipated travel needs well into the future.

In February 2024, Winterpock Road Widening was also honored with the ACEC Virginia Grand Award in the transportation category. AMT and JMT commemorated this recognition of the project alongside the Chesterfield County Department of Transportation.